Editorial: It’s prison, but it’s rehabilitating

The Washington Corrections Center for Women in Purdy is the only facility of its kind in the state. Make no mistake about it: WCCW is a prison, but it’s also a place where the focus is on rehabilitation. The last thing Superintendent Doug Cole and corrections officers want to see is an inmate return once they’ve finished their sentence.

Cole presented many statistics last week during a public affairs forum at Cottesmore of Life Care in Gig Harbor, but the most telling was this one: Children whose parents are incarcerated are seven times more likely to be incarcerated themselves at some point during their lives.

That’s why WCCW puts an emphasis on changing prisoners’ decision-making abilities. The prison offers many different programs for offenders who qualify, including on-site jobs, dog training for those with special needs, education and a trades-related apprenticeship program that could lead directly to a job in one of three workers unions.

The most important thing for offenders is to have a support system when they’re released. That includes family, shelter and a way to provide for themselves and their family. WCCW could simply house offenders and keep them from the general population until it’s time to set them free, but that wouldn’t solve the problem of people returning to prison.

The way to break that vicious cycle is to teach them positive steps that keep them away from the life they used to live.